Korean Short Rib Lettuce Wraps

1. Let ribs come to room temperature on the counter for 30 minutes. Pat dry and season with Chinese 5 spice, salt and pepper. Heat olive oil in a heavy bottomed, large stock pot, over medium high heat until shimmering then add ribs in a single layer.

2. Sear ribs, on all sides until browned, about 9-10 minutes total (3 minutes per side, don’t disturb/move ribs while browning on each side). Use tongs to remove ribs and transfer to a slow cooker. Add sake to the pan, and scrape up the browned bits from the bottom. Cook until reduced by half, about 1-2 minutes.

3. Pour reduced sake over the ribs. Combine the sauce ingredients in a bowl then add it into the slow cooker. Cover, set slow cooker to high until ribs are fall off the bone tender, about 5-7 hours (or 9-11 hours on low). Turn/flip ribs over 2 or 3 times during cooking.

4. Carefully (they will be tender) remove ribs from slow cooker and transfer to a serving platter or clean work surface. Cover loosely with aluminum foil. Strain the cooking sauce and let fat separate (use a fat separator or wait a minute for fat to rise to top). Discard fat. Transfer sauce to a small saucepan over medium/low-medium heat. Cook for 10-12 minutes or until reduced by half. In a small bowl mix cornstarch and water to make a slurry. Whisk slurry into sauce and continue to cook an additional 2 minutes, or until thickened. Pour or brush over ribs, reserving some to serve on the side.

5. For the lettuce wraps: Use two forks to remove meat from bone and shred. Divide rice, cucumber salad (optional, recipe on related blog post) and meat among lettuce cups. Spoon some of the additional sauce over the lettuce wraps and garnish with sesame seeds.

Notes:
1. To cook sushi rice: Place one cup of rice in a fine mesh strainer. Rinse with cool water until water runs clear. Allow to drain. Transfer rinsed rice to a heavy 2 quart saucepan and add 1 ¼ cups of cold water. Bring to boil over high heat. Immediately reduce heat to low and cover. Cook for 20 minutes. Leave lid on and remove from heat. Allow it to sit, covered for 10 minutes. Remove lid and fluff. Serve.
2. Ribs can be made a day in advance and placed in a container with a tight fitting lid. Strain the sauce, cover and refrigerate. The fat will be very easy to remove the next day, simply scoop it off the top and discard. Continue making the sauce as directed above. To warm the ribs, heat oven to 300 F. Place ribs on a rimmed sheet pan, covered with aluminum foil. Bake, turning over once or twice, until warmed throughout, about 10-15 minutes.